In the study, which was published in the journal “Flavor,” 30 subjects were presented with three salads: one arranged to resemble “Painting #201” by the painter Wassily Kandinsky; a regular tossed salad; and a plate arranged in what study authors called a ”neat formation,” with components that didn’t touch.

Subjects consistently rated the Kandinsky-inspired salad as tastier than the other two. Read: Taste buds are clearly only part of the deliciousness equation.

"The visual appeal of food has been, and will always be, an important matter to entice the appetite, ultimately enhancing the flavors of culinary creations," reads the study’s conclusion. ”While chefs rely mostly on their intuition and expertise to plate their dishes, we suggest that studying food presentations under the lens of psychology and sensory science could give precious insights to the so far empirical art of plating.”

But we’ve got to say—the Kandinsky-inspired salad (pictured above), ain’t winning any beauty contests. At least not when competing against the Masters of Artful Plating.

Check a few of them out below (and then pick your jaw up off the floor):

Gaze at this bowl, smeared with a pine emulsion and cocoa nibs. It’s filled with chicken liver spaetzle and thinly-sliced radishes. Now look away. Now look back. It still looks weird—but you totally want to eat it. Welcome to dinner at WD-50 in New York City.

And you thought smoking was illegal in restaurants. Not at the former Adara in Montclair, New Jersey. The eatery may now be closed, but the legend of this “smoky forest” of portobello mushrooms, black truffles, and Humboldt Fog chèvre lives on.